Concerns with Amazon CC; Sadness but Hope

[eager693]

I hope that everyone will read my thread carefully. I have a genuine concern regarding stealth amazon accounts and VCC. It appears that very few VCC's are working with Amazon, & the only other option is a real CC.

1) Issues with Real CC

The issue with a real CC is that banks and card issuers only allow you to change the mailing address, not the primary or billing address unless you can show them photo ID proof. You can change the mailing address using online banking. However, after contacting banks, they said to change the primary/billing address you need to come in and show photo id. Therefore, using a real CC for Amazon Stealth is pretty much impossible, since you can only register a real CC in the address shown on your id. US Addresses have only house number per zip code, thus AVS verification eliminates the lucky chance you will find another house number 6154 in zip code 37129. So to sum it all up, real CC will not work because of the points discussed above.

2) Issues using VCC's

The first big issue to VCC's is Amazon has been cracking down on them, most do not work anymore and are invalid.

The second big issue with VCC is that there would be a huge risk & loss to the seller if Amazon were to invalidate a VCC during a 2 week sales cycle. For example, lets say for my two weeks sales cycle Amazon is to deposit $3000 on June 24th. Lets say on June 21st, they randomly invalidate my VCC (as they did for many people using Vanilla Visas). Amazon can technically invalidate a VCC at any point, even though it is approved at registration. Amazon must have a valid CC and bank account on file in order to make the $3000 deposit on the 24th.

As discussed in the paragraph above, because they invalidated my VCC the $3000 funds won't get transferred. In addition, Amazon has already cracked down on most VCC's, so it would be extremely difficult to find another VCC. A real CC is not a possibility, as discussed in section 1. So without a valid CC, I will never see my $3000. If I ask Amazon to mail the $3000 to me, they would mail it to the random address provided. So basically because of the increased difficulty of finding a valid VCC, if at any point Amazon invalidates the VCC on file, I lose whatever I have for the sales cycle.

Lastly, regarding the VCC is the negative balance issue. If the VCC was at a negative balance at the time of invalidation, and Amazon asks for another card, how would one be provided if VCC is so difficult to find and real CC is cannot be used? A negative balance equals suspension after a few weeks. The debt collectors would look and send letters to the cake address provided, so I guess that's the only good part.

3) Amazon ruined my life, Sadness

For 2 years life was good. I was an honest seller. I never sold cakes, was polite with customers, and even gave free stuff with orders. For some sad reason, there were abusive buyers & competitors. They would make false complaints to get my listing blocked, would file fraudulent claims, and attack my 98% feedback. When I got suspended, I never understood why, 2 years 98% feedback. I begged in my appeal for a second chance. I was turned down.

My life has been very...VERY SAD the past 9 months since suspension. First I went back to the 9-5 slavery & was miserable. The abuse, dead end job, and office politics drove me insane. Office politics meaning when the boss walks by and says "Hey, how was your weekend?" when the jerk is really trying to check if you are working.... Nosy co-workers who spy and report you when you come back 2 minutes late from lunch. I became sick, unhealthy, and quit. Needed more freedom.

Then I became I cab driver to survive. Drunk people vomit in my car at night, bad drivers create countless fender benders, loud crying babies, smelly people, traffic is awful, the pay is bad, ppl eat & trash my car, & druggies at night make me churn. Cleaning smelly vomit is the worst part. I maybe work a few hours a week to survive & pay for food, I can't pay bills bc Amazon unfairly suspended an honest seller.

4) Special Thanks to Everyone at the Forum

Thank you, everyone on the forum, for being supportive. I honestly don't know what to sell on ebay, so I couldn't buy an ebay account from someone bc I would have no clue where to import from to make a healthy ebay profit. I can't really get back on Amazon because of the CC issues discussed above. I know most, if not all of us sellers here are honest people unfairly screwed by Ebazon. I hope there is a way to solve the CC issue so I can have my life back and not cleanup vomit. If anyone can help me sell online or get back on Amazon, or has suggestions, please let me know, I would be very grateful. Please PM me. Thank you so much.

-Eager693

[GhostOfAmazon]

The premises of your post are ENTIRELY incorrect. You need to do more searching in the forum....I've written dozens of posts and discussed this topic/debunked the myths you brought up MANY times.

[galigusso]

Think positive!

[eager693]

How can I possibly be incorrect? I researched the forum many times.

1st Regarding real CC, I went to 2 banks a few days ago and they both said you have to show photo id to get your billing/primary address changed. They must match, no PO boxes. They said you can only change the mailing address. I even called mastercard and visa, both said the same thing. So using a real CC is impossible, not bc the name check, but bc AVS verification limits a 1 house number per zip code, and you can't change the billing address, only mailing on a real CC.

2nd Regarding VCC. Most if not all of us on the forum would agree that VCC is very difficult to get approved now. How would you limit risk using VCC, even with multiple accounts? If at any point Amazon invalidates your VCC, you are screwed bc (a) a VCC/prepaid is very hard to find and there has been a crackdown by Amazon and (b) in order for funds to get disbursed you must have a valid CC on file. So if for example, $3000 was to be disbursed on June 26th.....and you could not find a replacement VCC, esp bc its very difficult now....you would never be able to extract the money.

If I am entirely incorrect, I am very open to criticism and being refuted. I actually hope Im wrong. Please explain or if easier, just post a few links to threads where the issue has been logically addressed. Most on the forum in recent posts, June or after, agree regarding the difficulty of VCC now and using a real CC. Please advise if you feel differently. For example, how would you change the billing address on a real CC without a legitimate photo id? Real CC issuers would not be able to touch the zip code or house number of the billing address without photo id. Thank you.

[jeffweico]

Banks will not change your primary or billing address, like you said. But you CAN request to add an address. Tell them you want to have some items sent to a friend who is home during the day, because UPS leaves stuff on your porch and you have had problems with them going missing.

Many banks WILL add that address because many merchants will NOT ship to an address not confirmed by AVS. Banks do not have to do this, but a lot of them will. I found this out when I wanted to buy some stuff at Newegg and they refused to ship to the address I specified. They told me to call my bank and have them add the address so it would pass AVS. I did and they said OK.

[jeffweico]

And don't let this stuff stop you. YES, there IS the possibility that you find a card that works and Amazon invalidates it. The answer to that is to sell across a few accounts. Spread out your sales. Use my method above for a real cc or use different VCC providers (I am hearing that some are still working). You cannot eliminate risk in business, you can only manage it.

One thing I have learned is that there is ALWAYS a way around the walls they build. I thought for sure that when the IRS started requiring reporting that it was all over for stealth. But we found the workarounds.

Also, is Amazon the ONLY place to sell? You can sell on eBay, Etsy (granted, only certain items) ioffer, your own website, craigslist, etc. You might have to have different inventory to make those sites work or change the way you operate, but there is ALWAYS going to be opportunities out there to make money.

You seem pretty focused on what will NOT work anymore for Amazon and I understand that. You need to know what you can REALISTICALLY do on Amazon without taking undue risk. But if you want to continue, you have to find a new way to sell, be it on Amazon or another venue.

My father had an arcade, which was very hard to do in the city of Chicago, because the zoning laws made it almost impossible to find a location. When his location shut down, he was out of business. It sucked. We went from making thousands of dollars a week to making nothing. He opened a video store. That made money for a couple of years, but then Blockbuster came in and that died too.

I had a very good way of selling information products on eBay in 1995. I was making $70k per year. Then eBay said I could no longer use featured auctions. I could no longer sell this, I could no longer sell that. Suddenly, the money dried up.

I took a corporate job and I actually LOVED IT, I was making a lot of money and I was the fifth highest person in a 400 person company. Then I got sick and couldn't continue.

I got better, but that opportunity had moved on. So, I started selling on eBay again. Built up my business to $5,000+ per month in profits. Then got suspended. Then found the forum and started selling again.

At the end of the day, life has its ups and downs. But you can't give up. If the internet were banned tomorrow, I would STILL find an opportunity somewhere...

[GhostOfAmazon]

Originally Posted by jeffweico

Banks will not change your primary or billing address, like you said. But you CAN request to add an address. Tell them you want to have some items sent to a friend who is home during the day, because UPS leaves stuff on your porch and you have had problems with them going missing.

90% of banks WILL allow you to change your Primary or Billing address ONLINE without any issue....it's 2015. At least, the banks I'VE used do.

Chase, Capital One, Discover, American Express, Ally, and several others I've changed my Billing/Primary address online with no questions asked....

Anyways, maybe your banks don't allow it...

[jeffweico]

Well, B of A DID let me change my address when I called in, but then they started sending my account statements to that address. I had access to that address, so it was no big deal, but you don't want to try this if you cannot receive mail at the address you are changing it to.

[miketyson]

Paperless. No mail or waste of trees!

[GhostOfAmazon]

Originally Posted by miketyson

Paperless. No mail or waste of trees!

I already suggested this in all threads I've commented on. Some clueless guy kept talking about how banks ignore paperless and send "important" documents via mail anyways.....

The only thing I get via snail mail with "paperless" is my actual card. And again, a PO Box solves even this simple problem...

[mhhbizz]

There is definitely a way.

I am starting 4 fresh new amazon accounts UK now.

Do a little bit more research, invest some money, try more VCC, different CC, prepaid cards fr other countries, spread the sales of your item into different account, venture into other industries, etc. An entrepreneur will never stop!!!. Try this and that. Hopefully you will find your way!

[GhostOfAmazon]

Originally Posted by mhhbizz

There is definitely a way.

I am starting 4 fresh new amazon accounts UK now.

Do a little bit more research, invest some money, try more VCC, different CC, prepaid cards fr other countries, spread the sales of your item into different account, venture into other industries, etc. An entrepreneur will never stop!!!. Try this and that. Hopefully you will find your way!

Most reports about problems with CC's on Amazon are coming from the US, not the UK. UK is having issues as well, but the US seems to be Amazons primary target, at least for now.

Be glad you have more options than your friends abroad. Count your blessings.

[eager693]

Jeff, Ghost of Amazon, & everyone many thanks for your outstanding input!